Effects of multiple exposures to D-cycloserine on extinction of conditioned fear in rats

Previous research has shown that an acute, post-training injection of D-cycloserine (DCS) facilitates extinction of conditioned fear in rats; however, the effects of multiple exposures to DCS in this situation are not known. In Experiment 1, rats were conditioned (light-shock pairings) and 24 h later given six extinction (light-alone) trials followed by an injection of DCS (15 mg/kg) or saline. The next day, all rats were tested for light-elicited freezing. In Experiment 2, the effect of DCS on extinction was tested in the same manner, except that rats were pre-exposed to DCS (0, 1, or 5 injections) just prior to conditioning. In Experiment 3, rats received five pre-exposures of DCS but conditioning occurred either 2 or 28 days after the last pre-exposure. The results showed that DCS facilitated extinction of conditioned freezing to the light CS when no drug pre-exposure had occurred, but pre-exposure to DCS just prior to conditioning disrupted the facilitation of extinction effect. When 28 days were interposed between pre-exposure and conditioning, the facilitatory effects of DCS on extinction were restored. These findings suggest that DCS has significant clinical value but that behavioral desensitization may occur with multiple exposures; however, desensitization is not permanent and is reduced by the passage of time.     

Impact of executive dysfunctions on episodic memory abilities in patients with ruptured aneurysm of the anterior communicating artery

Executive and memory dysfunctions are among the most frequently reported deficits following a ruptured aneurysm of the anterior communicating artery (ACoA). In order to study the impact of the dysexecutive syndrome on episodic and semantic memory, the data obtained from 59 ACoA patients were examined retrospectively. All patients were assessed on a variety of episodic memory tests (Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test, Rey Complex Figure Test, Weschler Memory Scale), semantic memory (verbal fluency), and standardized tests of executive functions (Trail Making Test, Maze tests, Wisconsin Card Sorting Test). There was a strong positive correlation between executive dysfunction and retrieval difficulties in episodic and semantic memory tasks. Comparisons of subgroups of patients with high and low frontal lobe functioning on delayed recall and recognition revealed a significant group X condition interaction in addition to significant group and condition main effects. ACoAs patients with low frontal lobe functioning were particularly deficient in free recall (immediate and delayed) while recognition was equally well preserved in the two subgroups. Neither subgroup presented with an abnormal forgetting over time suggesting a retrieval deficit rather than a true retention impairment.     

Are life episodes replayed during dreaming?

New phenomenological data demonstrate that integrated life episodes are incorporated in no more than 1-2% of dream reports. This appears to be at odds with the replay of temporally sequenced memory at the level of neuronal ensembles observed in some animals during sleep. This result will constrain emerging ideas on memory reactivation during sleep and the role of sleep in memory consolidation.     

Voice as Communication and Attachment in Therapy with Children

This paper suggests that both voice and face are factors in the development of attachment to important others in the environment from birth. Four vignettes are presented with differing psychological issues as support for the idea that voice communicates the nature of the attachment. It is further suggested that all the sense modalities are important for the development of attachment. However, it would seem that the voice is a powerful tool to gain and maintain the attention of the infant and older children.     

Six Years in the Cognitive and Metacognitive Life of 71 Families

Seventy-one families from a low socio-economic background, each with a son at risk of developing psychosocial problems at the onset of the study, were observed three times over a six-year period while solving a combinatorial task presented on a microcomputer. The permutations task was used to gather information with regard to cognitive functioning and cognitive self-regulation of the families, which were observed as a developmental unit. Cognitive functioning was assessed according to three variables: cognitive strategies, performance, and completion of the task. Six self-regulatory activities were assessed: task definition, planning, supervision, evaluation, parental support, and sharing of responsibilities. Although inefficient strategies were mainly used across the six years, the cognitive level of functioning improved over the years. Cognitive self-regulatory activities most often used across time were supervision and parental support. Differences were observed in the three time periods for supervision, task definition, parental support, and individual involvement. Results indicated a link between cognitive strategies used by the families to solve the task and their self-regulatory activities. Results are interpreted within both the Piagetian and Vygotskian perspectives. Families' cognitive self-regulatory activities observed in this study are an example of parental disengagement and children's growing involvement in a joint activity.     

Videoconferencing versus face-to-face psychotherapy: Insights from patients and psychotherapists about comparability of therapeutic alliance,empathy and treatment characteristics

Objective

Videoconferencing psychotherapy (VCT) is an effective treatment option. Yet, it is unclear whether a similar therapeutic alliance as in conventional face-to-face psychotherapy (F2F) can be achieved, since previous studies yielded mixed results. Furthermore, surveys about the attitudes towards VCT amongst patients have been missing until now. The current study gathered opinions from patients and psychotherapists about the perceived comparability of VCT and F2F regarding contextual factors and treatment characteristics, focusing on therapeutic alliance and empathy.

Method

An online survey amongst patients (N = 189) and practitioners (N = 57) taking part in cognitive behavioural therapy was conducted after the first lockdown in Germany due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a resulting transition from F2F to VCT for most participants.

Results

While patients experienced therapeutic alliance and empathy as comparable, psychotherapists indicated advantages of F2F. Both groups indicated advantages of F2F for the therapy contents and expressed advantages of VCT for flexibility regarding location and time. More than half of the participants expressed a preference for a combination of analogue and digital therapy.

Conclusion

The perceived disadvantages of VCT can be addressed, for example, with training programmes for psychotherapists targeting communication in VCT and adapting established psychotherapy methods to a digital format to further improve VCT.     

Parent engagement in an original and culturally adapted evidence-based parenting program,Legacy for Children™

Legacy for Children™ (Legacy) is an evidence-based program focused on promoting sensitive, responsive parenting for socioeconomically disadvantaged families. Legacy has recently been culturally and linguistically adapted for Spanish-monolingual Latino families and is being piloted in partnership with an early childhood education program. We conducted a mixed methods study to identify barriers and facilitators to engagement, using program monitoring data sources from both participant and group leader perspectives. We conducted qualitative analyses of open-ended data to identify distinct barriers (e.g., employment challenges, health-related challenges and appointments) and facilitators (e.g., other mothers in group, interest in program topics) to engagement that emerged across English and Spanish language curriculum versions; curriculum-specific barriers and facilitators were also documented. We interpret these findings in light of quantitative data on measures of engagement, showing that participants in the Spanish curriculum evidenced comparable levels of parent–group leader relationship quality relative to the English group, and higher levels of parent's group support/connectedness and overall satisfaction. These results offer promising considerations for optimizing families’ engagement in parenting programs in the context of early care and education settings.     

An own-age bias in mixed- and pure-list presentations: No evidence for the social-cognitive account

The own-age bias (OAB) is suggested to be caused by perceptual-expertise and/or social-cognitive mechanisms. Bryce and Dodson (2013, Psychology and Aging, 28, 87, Exp 2) provided support for the social-cognitive account, demonstrating an OAB for participants who encountered a mixed-list of own- and other-age faces, but not for participants who encountered a pure-list of only own- or other-age faces. They proposed that own-age/other-age categorization, and the resulting OAB, only emerge when age is made salient in the mixed-list condition. Our study aimed to replicate this finding using methods typically used to investigate the OAB to examine their robustness and contribution to our understanding of how the OAB forms. Across three experiments that removed theoretically unimportant components of the original paradigm, varied face sex, and included background scenes, the OAB emerged under both mixed-list and pure-list conditions. These results are more consistent with a perceptual-expertise than social-cognitive account of the OAB, but may suggest that manipulating age salience using mixed-list and pure-list presentations is not sufficient to alter categorization processes.     

Introducing SYPRENE: An International Practice Research Network for Strategic and Systemic Therapists and Researchers

SYPRENE, a new international Systemic Practice Research Network (PRN), has been established to fill the gap in practice-based research on the effectiveness and efficiency of strategic therapies. This article presents the rationale for the creation of SYPRENE and describes data collection methods, and the encoding system implemented within this PRN. More developments are expected in the recruitment of practitioners, the types of data collected, findings, and the implementation of SYPRENE in supervision, trainings, and professional schools.